What is a good Yo-Yo IR1 score for soccer players?

The averages

Bangsbo’s review gathers Yo-Yo IR1 results from soccer players tested in several studies and groups them by the level they play at. The scores are total distance in metres. The last column is where that distance falls on the course, computed from the test’s shuttle table.

Playing level	Men (m)	Where it falls	Women (m)	Where it falls
Top class	2,420	level 20, about 17.5 km/h	1,600	level 17, 5 shuttles in
Elite	2,190	level 19, 4 shuttles in	1,360	level 16, 7 shuttles in
Sub-elite	2,030	level 18, 8 shuttles in	1,160	level 16, 2 shuttles in
Moderately trained	1,810	level 18, 2 shuttles in	not given

The review states group sizes for some rows: 25 top-class men, 71 elite men, 29 moderately trained men, 44 top-class women, 74 elite women and 63 sub-elite women.

How to read them

These are means of groups tested in different studies. They describe where each level of play lands on average. They are not a pass mark to reach before you can play at that level, and individual players spread widely around them.

A score of 2,000 m is the seventh shuttle of level 18, run at 16.5 km/h. The top-class average of 2,420 m is about a shuttle into level 20, which starts at 17.5 km/h.

The gap between levels

For men, moderately trained players and top-class players are 610 m apart, about 15 shuttles. Top class and elite are 230 m apart, under 6 shuttles. A player already above 2,000 m has little room left on the IR1, and the faster Yo-Yo IR2 is the test built for that range.

Using a score in a squad

Compare a player with themselves. The test is repeatable, so the change from one session to the next says more than a comparison with a table.

Keep the conditions the same. Same surface, same shoes, same recording, same time of day. A grass test and a gym test do not give the same distance.

Compare like with like. Look at players with the same role and the same level of play, and at the spread inside the group before the mean.

What the score does not tell you

The Yo-Yo IR1 measures the ability to repeat intense efforts with short recoveries. It does not measure sprint speed, strength or technical level. For the VO₂max estimate of a score, the test uses 0.0084 × distance + 36.4, and the Yo-Yo IR1 calculator does the arithmetic from the number of shuttles.

For a general explanation of the protocol, the shuttle table and the other norms, read the Yo-Yo IR1 test page.

Frequently asked questions

Is 2,000 m a good Yo-Yo IR1 score for a footballer?

For a male player it sits just under the sub-elite average of 2,030 m in Bangsbo's data, and above the 1,810 m of moderately trained players. For a woman, 2,000 m is well above the top-class average of 1,600 m.

What is the Yo-Yo IR1 score of a professional soccer player?

The review reports 2,420 m for top-class male players, those playing at the highest international level, and 2,190 m for elite players one step below. Both are averages of groups tested in different studies.

Are there Yo-Yo IR1 norms for youth players?

Not on this page. The averages here come from adult players grouped by level of play. A score for a 13-year-old should be compared with data for 13-year-olds, and we do not publish one without a source by age.

Is a higher Yo-Yo IR1 score always better?

A higher score means a player repeats intense efforts better, which is what the test is built to measure. It does not rank players on skill or on position, and a player's own change from one test to the next says more than a comparison with a table.